Enter and View Authorised representative

This is an important role within Healthwatch Nottingham and Nottinghamshire which enables us to enter health and social care settings and gather feedback to improve services. We are able to offer an independent perspective, looking at the service with impartiality, based on interactions with service users, relatives and carers. Therefore, we expect our Enter and View Authorised Representatives to commit themselves to the entire process, from visiting and recording evidence to creating a report based on that evidence. This ensures accuracy and validity of information gathered. 

We are looking for people passionate about listening and making a real change in the local community within Health and Social care. Please see our website for more information about Enter and View. Please note visits can be in a wide variety of Health and Social care establishments. If you have any queries please do get in touch.

The Enter and View Authorised Representative role includes the following tasks:

· Participate in the pre-visit orientation session, which will include information about the purpose of the visit, background and specific evidence gathering requirements.

· Enter the premises on time and in conjunction with other Healthwatch team members.

· Talk to service users individually to gather their experiences on the issues we are looking into.

· Record the required evidence during the visit using a suitable means, such as paper, voice/video recordings or photographs.

· Meet with other members of the Healthwatch visiting team directly after the visit to discuss broad findings and any other issues.

· Work with Healthwatch team members to collate the evidence collected and produce a report based on that evidence within the set timescales.

· Conduct a return visit, if necessary, to find out if improvement plans are being implemented and the impact these are having on the service users.

What skills do I need?

We do not request any formal qualifications for this role, and we do appreciate the unique qualities you bring as an individual. Throughout all phases of the project, you will be expected to conduct yourself in an appropriate manner, focusing solely on the purpose of the visits and the tasks assigned by Healthwatch Nottingham and Nottinghamshire. Listed below are some ideal traits, qualities, and skills which we believe would be valuable for this role. We recognise that not everyone will have all of these and welcome applications from individuals who have a desire to support the work we do. Please note that you must be aged 18 or older for this role.

· Good interpersonal and communication skills

· Empathetic and understanding

· A non-judgemental and respectful attitude

· Respect for individuals from diverse backgrounds

· A good understanding of the healthcare system

· A good understanding of social care

· May have experience of working or volunteering in a health and/or social care setting

· Experience of working with a wide range of people

· Report writing skills

· Computer literacy

· An interest in health and social care and a commitment to supporting people to have a voice

· A desire to improve quality within services

· Ability to record information accurately

· A clear understanding of confidentiality and boundaries

· Ability to report impartially on evidence, not personal opinions

· Ability to work as part of a team

· Good time keeping, able to be flexible and adapt to any changes on the day of visit

· Ability to travel to a variety of venues

· Self-awareness and ability to recognise own limitations

We do request a standard DBS check for this role as part of safe volunteering practice. You will be interacting one-on-one with people for short periods of time and may come into contact with sensitive or personal data. We are a forward-thinking organisation and will carefully consider any disclosures that are made, taking into account the offence, time and severity. We only request that you are honest with us and disclose anything that you are legally required to.

When do I need to be available?

	Morning	Afternoon	Evening
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday

Details

This is a flexible role and all volunteering would be agreed in advance. To ensure the team functions effectively, all Authorised Representatives will need to allocate sufficient time to complete the task from start to finish once they have accepted a visit. Timescales will vary dependent on individual visits and projects, but as an approximation, we expect that the whole process for a single project should take a maximum of 4 to 5 full days of your time over a period of 4 weeks and a minimum of 1.5 days in 4 weeks. The number of projects you are involved in will be agreed through discussion between yourself and Healthwatch staff. Training is required for this role.

Where does this role take place?